It is impossible to steal user data or money from a bank card due to pressing a key on a smartphone in tone mode, Karen Kazaryan, Director General of the Institute for Internet Research, and Sergey Vakulin, a cybersecurity expert, told RBC.
This is how the experts evaluated the reports given by the RIA Novosti agency that fraudsters, under the pretext of conducting a survey, can ask the smartphone user to press a key in tone mode and thus block the phone and steal money from a bank card. In a comment to the agency, Kaspersky Lab cybersecurity expert Dmitry Galov pointed out that such a scheme can only be carried out by first infecting the device with malware.
“I cannot imagine the possibility of hacking a smartphone in this way and stealing data. It sounds strange. Also, there is no way to infect a smartphone with malicious software in this way in order to subsequently steal money. Pressing a key in tone mode does not lead to anything fatal, ”says Ghazaryan.
Vakulin said that there are times when a robot calls the victim and informs about a change in the bank account number, and then offers to press a key if the change is made by mistake. After that, the user is connected to the fraudster, who introduces himself as a “technical specialist”, and the person already provides him with personal data.
“Pressing a key in tone mode can actually only mean sending certain commands. In general, the scheme of deception remains the same, it is just that a robot can be added to it, ”explains Vakulin.
In addition, the expert cites as an example cases when, after being redirected to a robot, a person in tone mode entered personal data, card number, CVC code and card expiration date. Such data entered in the tone dialing can be deciphered using special programs, warns Vakulin.
“It is also worth installing a program on your phone that displays information about the caller, warns that an incoming call is from scammers,” added the specialist.
In June, police named the six most common types of telephone fraud in Russia. Among them – a message about a relative in trouble, allegedly committed on behalf of a law enforcement officer; SMS with a request to call back to the specified number, when, after the call, the user is kept on the line and the funds are debited; sending links with viruses, after clicking on which money is debited from the victim.
Another way of fraud is a call, allegedly from the host of a popular radio station, who congratulates on winning the lottery and offers to provide bank card details, as well as transfer money to pay personal income tax. In addition, fraudsters who claim to be the technical support of a telecom operator can call victims to connect to a new service or participate in a promotion. The cybercriminals offer to enter a certain set of characters, after which the money is debited. In addition, a fraudster can send an SMS with a request to transfer money, allegedly due to problems that have arisen.
